Wells Fargo Whistle-Blowers’ Fate Becomes Just a Footnote -
In November, the newly installed Wells Fargo chief executive, Timothy J. Sloan, told employees
that retaliation against whistle-blowers would “not be tolerated at Wells Fargo.”
Hope Hardison, Wells Fargo’s chief administrative officer, told me this week
that it was “critically important” that all 270,000 Wells Fargo employees feel “safe and comfortable” reporting questionable conduct.
Ms. Hardison said that after the investigation conducted with Shearman & Sterling, as well as an in-depth review by another third party, Wells
Fargo had not substantiated a single instance of retaliation so far, while conceding that a few cases might be “cause for concern.”
In the Wells Fargo footnote, lawyers at Shearman & Sterling largely exonerated the bank.
In a 78-page preliminary finding, recently disclosed by American Banker, an OSHA administrator ruled
that there was “reasonable cause to believe” that Wells Fargo had engaged in retaliation when Ms. Ponce de Leon was fired in 2011 after raising questions about fraudulent account openings; Wells Fargo is contesting that ruling.
In Ms. Ponce de Leon’s case, Wells Fargo insisted that she was fired for excessive drinking
and for a “long, well-documented history of unprofessional conduct,” according to the preliminary OSHA ruling.
The OSHA ruling cited 20 pages of commendations spanning six years
that Ms. Ponce de Leon had received as a Wells Fargo employee — the most recent just six months before she was fired.